This story first appeared on the Points of Light website.

It takes a certain kind of patience and persistence to be an advocate for systemic change. It’s the kind Cheyenne Klapper, 19, has in droves. Cheyenne is a freshman at the University of Virginia who lives a life reflective of her principles. She’s six years into being vegan, and she advocates for environmental justice, animal rights and food policy. Her other primary focus is criminal justice reform. If all goes well, she intends to go to law school to continue the fight for change.

Much of Cheyenne’s contributions to criminal justice reform has been through the Center for Youth and Family Advocacy’s (CYFA) Youth Restorative Diversion Initiative (YRDI). CYFA is a nonprofit founded five years ago by two defense attorneys determined to address the inequities and imbalances they saw amongst their caseloads. The YRDI includes programs designed around restorative justice, the practice of keeping juvenile offenders from going through the court system and, as is often the case, carrying the consequences of their mistakes for the rest of their lives.

“One of the misconceptions is that these kids deserve punishment. Obviously, we want kids to think about their actions critically, but it’s not punitive,” Cheyenne explains. “Time and time again, when studies are put out about restorative justice measures, it shows that it creates thriving communities, and punitive measures create higher recidivism rates. That’s not what we want for the country.”

One such initiative is Youth Peer Court (YPC). In YPC, an offender’s case — a misdemeanor or nonviolent felony — is heard and adjudicated by other youth without burdening them with a criminal record or added trauma. The consequences are designed to address the root cause of the crime and often include volunteer service, education modules, apologies and/or letters of acknowledgement. In short, it’s a second chance.

“We’ve had 100% compliance. We’ve received 70-plus cases at this point, and all of the young people that have been referred to us have decided to willingly go forth and complete our programs,” emphasizes Zipporah Baldwin, director of programs for CYFA.

If anyone dropped out, they would then be referred back to the police. In reality, the program is so successful, offenders often come back after making amends to volunteer as YPC ambassadors. In 2023, Cheyenne completed her high school’s capstone internship with CYFA, joining during the launch of Youth Restorative Diversion Initiative. As part of the work experience for course credit, she volunteered around 350 hours during her senior year, starting with training and participation in Youth Peer Court roles as well as Promoting Empathy through Equitable Resolution (PEER). The latter brings both parties in a dispute together to discuss a restorative agreement vs. just the offender. Cheyenne also served as one of the first Youth Advisory Board (YAB) members.

“She had a huge hand in forming how things were going to work, and working out the most effective approaches and how to work with these teens who come through our program,” Zipporah adds.

Zipporah describes her as a natural-born, dynamic leader with charisma that people are drawn to and look up to, even those her own age. In her role advising the YAB, Cheyenne realized meeting and discussing what is important to young people and reporting back wasn’t enough. Making change was essential. Last summer, with the help of student volunteers, she completely overhauled the program.

“I created the new rules for the Youth Advisory Board. I created the committees, and I looked at people to intern,” she recalls. “We based it on the idea of student self-governance. I was inspired by UVA, where the clubs there are all student led.”

Now, over 20 students, many of whom are also Peer Court ambassadors, are organized into four committees. Each committee has a specific purpose and is overseen by Cheyenne. They identify issues in the community or the nation as a whole and come up with steps for actionable change. Her goal is not to give orders but to inspire others to take initiative and ownership.

“She’s willing to listen. And I think that’s truly what makes a beautiful leader,” Zipporah states. “She has so much to offer. She has had so many diverse experiences. But in spite of all that, she’s always willing to open up the floor for people to share their thoughts, to share their concerns.”

Cheyenne also served as the inaugural program committee chair through which she led the organization of CYFA’s first Listen Learn Lead Summit, a public event for students to learn about issues critical to their well-being and become agents of change for healthier, more equitable communities. CYFA also aims to teach young people their rights and how to interact with law enforcement.

For further information on Points of Light, please see: https://www.pointsoflight.org/awards/moving-past-mistakes-and-making-better-futures/